Attorneys ask court to reject request to expedite hearings for Arizona death row inmates
By Lacey Latch, July 7, 2021
Corrections & Clarifications: A previous version of this article misstated the plans for the executions of two death row inmates. The state of Arizona has requested two dates for executions, but those had yet to be scheduled.
Attorneys for death row inmate Clarence Dixon have filed an objection to Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s request to expedite the execution schedules for Dixon and another convicted murderer, Frank Atwood, after the state acknowledged the lethal injection drug would expire sooner than previously announced.
Instead of the 90-day shelf-life previously claimed by the state, the lethal injection drug only maintains its potency for up to 45 days after it is compounded. That happens shortly after an official warrant for execution is issued.
The shortened shelf-life of the drug limits the time available for the state to file an execution warrant, test the drug and carry out the death sentence. As a result, the Attorney General’s Office proposed that the court expedite the hearing schedules for the two inmates to complete the executions as scheduled.
Doing so also would decrease the amount of time the men have to respond to filings and seek legal options regarding their executions.
“The State of Arizona has full control over its execution drugs, and it sought the original briefing schedule based on information received from its own pharmacist,” said Dale Baich, one of Dixon’s attorneys. “The state now says that pharmacist was wrong. This is not the first time Arizona has had problems with execution drugs.”
The Attorney General’s Office did not immediately return a request for comment on the filing.
Why gas chamber is an option
All filings in the case were submitted to the Arizona Supreme Court.
This legal battle is the latest in a series of issues the state has had with execution drugs. Most recently, as Arizona prepares to possibly resume use of a gas chamber, an investigation found that state officials had bought the wrong type of cyanide than the one called for in newly published protocols.
While Arizona voters banned the use of the gas chamber nearly 30 years ago, state law still allows for inmates whose crimes were committed prior to the change in 1992 to choose their manner of execution, whether by gas or lethal injection. This includes both Dixon and Atwood, whose crimes were committed in 1978 and 1984, respectively.
The state wants to schedule Atwood’s execution for Sept. 28 and set Dixon’s execution for a few weeks later, on Oct. 19. Neither man has publicly discussed their manner of death decision but they each must declare their choice at least 20 days prior to their execution date.
Botched execution, illegal imports
Part of the reason the potency of the drug is a major focus is the botched execution of Joseph Wood in 2014. After two hours of gulping for air as 15 doses of the drug coursed through his veins and his lawyers searched for a judge to stay the execution, Wood ultimately succumbed to the toxic chemicals and the state faced severe backlash as a result.
Arizona was forced to temporarily suspend executions and overhaul protocols and procedures, including adopting a new drug cocktail and enduring the lengthy process of finding an approved drug.
Both before and after Wood’s death brought national attention to the state’s execution practices, Arizona tried to illegally import execution drugs. In 2010, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration confiscated drugs bound for several states including Arizona.
Five years later the Arizona Department of Corrections paid almost $27,000 to import an illegal execution drug that was confiscated by federal authorities.
